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Thursday, September 13, 2012

The Miraculous Crucifix of Limpias –Jesus Christ comes alive on the Cross

The Miraculous Crucifix of Limpias is located in the 16th century
Church of St. Peter in Santander, Spain, not far from the popular
alleged apparitions of the Blessed Mother in Garabandal, Spain. The
Crucifix is a beautiful 6 foot life-size figure of the crucified
Jesus, and is located directly above the main altar. Arranged on either
side of the crucifix, and somewhat below it, are life-size figures of
the Sorrowful Virgin Mary and the Apostle John. The miraculous crucifix
is believed to have been the work of Pedro de Mena, who died in 1693,
and the crucifix was given to the church by Father Diego de la Piedra
Secadura, who had been born at Limpias in 1716.

The crucifix is
a meditation on the sufferings of Our Lord portraying Him in the final
moments of His agony. Measuring six feet tall, the corpus is clothed
with a loin cloth that is held in place with a rope. The feet are one
atop the other and are pierced with a single nail. The index and middle
fingers of both pierced hands are extended as though giving a final
blessing. The face of Our Lord is of particular beauty, with its glass
eyes looking toward Heaven so that, for the most part, only the whites
of the eyes are visible.

The First Miracle -The eyes of Jesus on the crucifix miraculously come alive

The
first recorded miracle involving this crucifix took place in 1914, five
years before the grand miracles of 1919. The recipient of the favor was
Don Antonio Lopez, a monk belonging to the Order of the Pauline Fathers
who conducted a college in Limpias. His entire account reads as
follows:

“One day in the month of August, 1914, I went into
the parish church of Limpias, by order of my friend D. Gregorio Bringas,
to fix the electric light over the high altar. In order to be able to
work more comfortably I put two large cases on the altar, and on them a
ladder, the ends of which I leaned against the wall that serves as a
background to the figure of the Crucified One.

"After I had
worked for two hours, in order to rest myself a little I began to clean
the figure so that it could be seen more clearly. My head was on a level
with the Head of the Christ, and at a distance of only a couple of feet
from it. It was a lovely day and through the window in the sanctuary a
flood of light streamed into the church and lit up the whole altar. As I
was gazing at the crucifix with the closest attention, I noticed with
astonishment that Our Lord's eyes were gradually closing, and for five
minutes I saw them quite closed.

"Overwhelmed with fright at such
an unexpected spectacle, I could still hardly quite believe what I saw,
and was about to come down from the ladder. Notwithstanding, my
bewilderment was so great that my strength suddenly failed me; I lost my
balance, fainted, and fell from the ladder onto the edge of the altar
itself and down the steps into the sanctuary.

"After I had
somewhat recovered, I was convinced from where I lay that the eyes of
the figure on the crucifix were still closed. I pulled myself together
hastily and went out in order to relate what had happened, and also to
be medically examined, for my whole body was in great pain from the
fall.

"A few minutes after I had left the church I met the
sacristan, who was just going to ring the Angelus, as it was twelve
o'clock noon. When he saw me so agitated and covered with dust he asked
if anything had happened to me. I told him what had occurred, whereupon
he said he was not surprised as he had already heard that the Santo
Cristo had closed His eyes on one other occasion, and that it was
probably brought about by the working of some interior mechanism.

"I
asked him to collect the tools together and to put away the ladder, and
generally to tidy up everything again. Then when I reached the college I
told the Fathers the whole of the above incident. I was examined, but
no wounds were found on my body and no broken bones, only a few bruises
of slight importance.

"Thinking that the movement I had observed
in the eyes of the figure was to be attributed in any case to a
mechanism, I attached no further importance to the vision, but tried,
however, to find out on what occasion this fact had already been
observed, but without success, as no one could give me any information
whatsoever about the matter.

"Since then I have often cleaned the
crucifix, and at the same time examined it minutely, and am convinced
that there is neither a spring nor any other mechanism on it. What is
more, the eyes were so firmly fixed that even by pressing hard with
one's fingers they could not be made to move in the least, nor could
they be turned in any direction, as I have proved myself again and
again.”

-------

Father Antonio Lopez wrote the
above account of his experience at the request of his superiors, and
then kept the matter to himself. It was only on March 16, 1920, a year
after the many miracles of 1919, that the above declaration was made
public.

The Extraordinary Miracles of our Lord on the Crucifix of Limpias in 1919 –Jesus Once Again Comes Alive

During
the time of the numerous miracles of the crucifix of Christ in Limpias
the practice of the Catholic faith in the village of Limpias and the
surrounding area was waning. The little town that is favored with the
possession of the miraculous crucifix is located on the River Ason in
the northernmost part of central Spain, near the Bay of Biscay. Because
of this fact it is written that the venerable old Church of St. Peter
that houses the Limpias crucifix was practically deserted at the time of
the first miracle in 1914, and later those that took place in 1919.

In
light of this, in an effort to re-ignite devotion to the beautiful
crucifix and to encourage attendance at the venerable old church, the
pastor, Rev. Thomas Echevarria, decided to accomplish this by means of a
mission. After applying to the Capuchin monastery at Montehano, near
Santander, two priests were placed at his disposal: Friar Anselmo de
Jalon and Friar Agatangelo de San Miguel, both of whom were known for
their apostolic zeal and success as missionaries.

On the last day
of the mission, Sunday, March 30, while the Archpriest D. Eduardo
Miqueli was celebrating Holy Mass, both missionaries were occupied in
the confessional. Fr. Agatangelo, however, delivered the day's sermon
based on the words, "My son, give me thy heart." (Prov. 23:26). While he
was speaking, a girl of about 12 entered the confessional of Fr. Jalon
and told him that the eyes of Christ on the cross were closed. Thinking
that this was the product of the child's imagination, the priest ignored
her claim until other children also came to him with the same message.
After Fr. Agatangelo finished the address and was about to return to his
confessional, Fr. Jalon approached him and told him of the children's
claim. Both priests then looked at the crucifix but saw nothing unusual.
Presently a man in the congregation shouted for everyone to look upon
the crucifix. In a few moments the people confirmed with great
excitement what the children had seen. Some of the people began crying,
others shouted that they had seen a miracle, others fell to their knees
in prayer while others called out to God for mercy.

After the
parish priest was called from the sacristy and was told that the eyes of
the Crucified were opening and closing and that the figure was turning
His gaze from side to side, he, too, fell on his knees to pray. But his
prayer was soon interrupted by many of the people who declared that the
figure was perspiring and that Fr. Jalon should climb up to the crucifix
to verify it. When a ladder was produced, Fr. Jalon climbed up and saw
that the perspiration covered the figure's neck and chest. After
touching the neck, he looked upon his fingers that were wet with the
fluid. As verification of what had taken place, he showed his moistened
fingers to the congregation. Once again agitation and excitement gripped
the people so that it was a long time before they were calmed.

None
of the priests saw the movements of the eyes, but Fr. Agatangelo later
saw the miracle several times when he prayed alone in the church at
night.
A report of all that had taken place was given by the
Archpriest D. Eduardo to the bishop of Santander on April 2, 1919. This
report was later published in the Boletin Eclesiastico of the diocese of
Santander.

The Miraculous Apparitions of 1919 continue

The
second set of public apparitions first took place on Palm Sunday, April
13, 1919, when two prominent men of Limpias approached the altar.
Speaking of hallucination and mass hysteria as they looked upon the
crucifix, one of them suddenly pointed upward and fell to his knees. At
once the other man also fell to his knees, crying for mercy and
proclaiming his belief in the miracle.

The third apparitions took
place on Easter Sunday, April 20, in the presence of a group of nuns
known as the Daughters of the Cross who conducted a girls' school in
Limpias. They saw both the eyes and lips of the Santo Cristo move. At
this time some of their students also saw the miracle, as did a group of
people who were reciting the Holy Rosary. Their experience was quickly
reported to the parish priest. The manifestations were repeated almost
daily from April 24.

As can be expected, the church was often
filled with people from Limpias and the neighboring towns who were
hoping to witness the miracle. Reverend Baron Von Kleist reports that:

“Many said that the Saviour looked at them; at some in a kindly
manner, and at others gravely, and at yet others with a penetrating and
stern glance. Many of them saw tears in His eyes; others noticed that
drops of blood ran down from the temples pierced by the crown of thorns;
some saw froth on His lips and sweat on His body; others again saw how
He turned His eyes from side to side, and let His gaze pass over the
whole assembly of people; or how, at the Benediction, He made a movement
of the eyes as if giving the blessing; how at the same time He moved
the thorn-crowned head from one side to the other. Others had the
impression that a deep, submissive sigh was wrested from His breast,
some believed they saw Him whisper- in short, the most varied
manifestations were observed on this crucifix.”

One of the
first to declare his experience to the secular press was the well-known
and highly respected D. Adolfo Arenaza. His testimony was published May
5, 1919 in the newspaper La Gazeta del Norte, which was published in
Bilbao. He reported that he joined a procession going to Limpias in
order to visit the crucifix. While looking through his field-glasses he
saw the movement of the eyes four times. He further stated that it could
not have been an effect of the light nor an hallucination, since people
saw the miracle from all parts of the church. He then asked, "Does Our Lord really move His eyes ... I am rather of the opinion that He really does move them, for I have seen it myself."

Because of the newspaper reports, pilgrimages from near and distant
towns began to arrive in Limpias, for the newspaper reports detailing
accounts of the wonderful crucifix spread the news to all parts of Spain
and finally to other countries including the United States. One
journalist who watched in amazement at the movement of the eyes and
mouth of our Lord stated:

“I could perceive two movements of the jawbone, as if He were saying
two syllables with His lips. I shut my eyes quite tight and asked
myself: "What will He have said?" The answer was not long in coming, for
in my innermost self I clearly heard the significant and blessed words,
"Love Me!"

One early group of pilgrims under the
leadership of the Bishop of Toledo, Joseph Schrembs, arrived in Limpias
from America. By the middle of November, 1919, 66 pilgrim trains had
arrived at Limpias. Finally, by the year 1921, the number of pilgrims
had increased to such an extent that foreign traffic in Limpias was
determined to be greater than the visitors to Lourdes. Additionally,
numerous Princes, Barons, politicians and other notables also visited
Limpias, as did dignitaries of the Church in Spain including bishops and
cardinals. Archbishops also arrived from Mexico, Peru, Manila, Cuba,
and other foreign nations.

The multiple albums that are found in the sacristy of the church of
Limpias contain well over 8,000 testimonies of people who had seen the
wonderful apparitions. Of these, 2,500 were sworn on oath. Among these
witnesses were members of religious orders, priests, doctors, lawyers,
professors, and governors of universities, officers, merchants, workmen,
country folk, unbelievers and even atheists.

The are several
hundred testimonies from religious worldwide who witnessed the miracles.
For example Father Celestino Maria de Pozuelo, a Capuchin monk, who
visited Limpias on July 29, 1919 and wrote a detailed report that
included this statement: " ... The face presented a vivid expression
of pain: the body was a bluish colour, as if it had received cruel
blows, and was bathed in perspiration. . ."

In his statement,
Father Valentin Incio of Gijon tells that he visited Limpias on August
4, 1919 and joined a group of pilgrims who wen; witnessing the miracle.
There were 30 to 40 people, two other priests, 10 sailors and a woman
who was crying with emotion. Father Incio wrote:

“At first Our
Lord seemed to be alive; His head then preserved its customary position
and His countenance the natural expression, but His eyes were full of
life and looked about in different directions... Then His gaze was
directed towards the centre, where the sailors stood, whom He
contemplated for a long time; then He looked to the left towards the
sacristy with a remarkably stern glance which He retained for some time.
Now came the most touching moment of all. Jesus looked at all of us,
but so gently and kindly, so expressively, so lovingly and divinely,
that we fell on our knees and wept and adored Christ. .. Then Our Lord
continued to move His eyelids and eyes, which shone as if they were full
of tears; then He moved His lips gently as if He were saying something
or praying. At the same time the above mentioned lady who was beside me,
saw the Master trying to move His arms and striving to get them loose
from the Cross.”

Signing their names to this statement were the three priests, nine of the sailors and the lady.

The
Coadjutor of St. Nicholas Church in Valencia, Father Paulino Girbes,
relates in his statement of September 15, 1919 that he was in the
company of two bishops and 18 priests when they knelt before the
crucifix:

"... We all saw the face of the Santo Cristo become
sadder, paler, and more bluish-looking. The mouth also was wider open
than usual. The eyes gave a gentle glance now at the bishops and then in
the direction of the sacristy. The features at the same time took on
the expression of a man who is in his death-struggle. That lasted a long
time. I could not restrain my tears and began to weep; the others were
similarly affected..."

Father Joseph Einsenlohr submitted his
statement on June 18, 1921. After offering Holy Mass at the altar below
the crucifix, he sat in the church to attend the Mass being offered by
another priest. He wrote:

“After the Santo Cristo moved His
head and eyes for a certain time He began to pull at the shoulders, to
writhe and to bend, as a man does when he is nailed alive to a cross.
Everything was in motion, only the hands and feet remained nailed fast.
In the end the whole body relaxed as if exhausted, then took up its
natural position again with the head and eyes turned up in the direction
of heaven. This whole scene of the dying Saviour lasted from the
Sanctus until after the priest's Communion...”

A Capuchin
monk named Father Antonio Maria de Torrelavega visited the crucifix on
September 11, 1919, he saw blood streaming from the left corner of Our
Lord's mouth. The next day, he:

“.... observed anew, only
still more frequently, the movement of the eyes, and saw, too, once more
that blood was flowing down from the corner of the mouth ... Several
times He also looked at me. Now I felt as if my whole being were shaken
violently ... I stood up, therefore, and changed places three or four
times, always observing, however, the same manifestations ... At about
two o'clock, as I was kneeling in one of the central benches, I saw the
Santo Cristo gazing at me again, and this so affected me that I had to
hold on tight to the bench, as my strength was beginning to fail me ... I
noticed that the countenance changed colour and became bluish and sad.
Many other persons who were kneeling round me also observed this ... Now
I verify it; there is no doubt the Santo Cristo moves His eyes. During
my visit I saw the movement of the eyes about fifty times... “

Father
Manuel Cubi, an author, lecturer and confessor of the Church del Pilar
in Saragossa, Spain gave his statement on December 24, 1919. In the
company of a group of people, he saw the Santo Cristo in a death agony.

“…One had the impression that Our Lord was trying to loosen Himself
from the cross with violent convulsive movements; one thought to hear
the death-rattle in His throat. Then He raised His head, turned His
eyes, and closed His mouth. Now and then I saw His tongue and teeth ...
For nearly half an hour He showed us how much we had cost Him, and what
He had suffered for us during His abandonment and thirst on the cross.”

There
are also many statements from physicians who were at first very
skeptical and sought a scientific reason to disprove the “hysteria”.

A report made by Dr. Penamaria was published in the paper “La Montana” dated May, 1920. The doctor described what seemed to him to be "...a re-enactment of Christ's death on the Cross." He
writes that after witnessing the movement of the statue's eyes and
mouth, and after changing locations in the church to verify the miracle,
he prayed for a more distinctive proof, something more extraordinary "...
that would leave no scope to further doubt, and would give me positive
grounds for His miracle, so that I might also proclaim it to all and
sundry, and defend it against every opponent, even at the risk of losing
my life." He then writes:

“This request seemed pleasing
to Our Lord ... A moment later His mouth was twisted sharply to the
left, His glassy, pain-filled eyes gazed up to heaven with the sad
expression of those eyes that look and yet do not see. His lead colored
lips appeared to tremble; the muscles of the neck and breast were
contracted and made breathing forced and laboured. His truly Hippocratic
features showed the keenest pangs of death. His arms seemed to be
trying to get loose from the cross with convulsive backward and forward
movements, and showed clearly the piercing agony that the nails caused
in His hands at each movement. Then followed the in-drawing of a breath,
then a second ... a third ... I do not know how many... always with
painful oppression; then a frightful spasm, as with someone who is
suffocating and struggling for air, at which the mouth and nose were
opened wide. Now follows an outpouring of blood, fluid, frothing, that
runs over the under-lip, and which the Saviour sucks up with His bluish,
quivering tongue, that He slowly and gently passes two or three times
in succession over the lower lip; then an instant of slight repose,
another slow breath ... now the nose becomes pointed, the lips are drawn
together rhythmically, and then extend, the bluish cheek-bones project,
the chest expands and contracts violently after which His head sinks
limply on His breast, so that the back of the head can be seen
distinctly. Then ... He expires! . . . I have tried to describe in
outline what I saw during more than two hours...”

An
extraordinary revelation was observed by Dr. D. Pedro Cuesta in August,
1920. The doctor first tells that he was in the company of a priest, a
doctor and a married couple. In the morning, during Holy Mass, his
companions saw the miraculous movements but he did not, even though he
moved from one position in the church to another. That afternoon he was
persuaded to return to the church and saw this astounding revelation.

"When
I fixed my gaze for the third or fourth time on the figure I noticed
that the fleshy parts entirely disappeared, so that only the skin still
remained, a skeleton on which I could have made anatomical studies. The
head was completely dried up, until it, like the skin that I had seen,
totally vanished. After I had not seen the figure at all for some time
it reappeared, but as if mummified, until later on it was also restored
by degrees in its fleshy parts. Yes, I observed clearly the formation of
a hypertrophy (enlargement) of the head, which then also extended to
the remaining parts of the body. Each of these apparitions was repeated
twice.

"At the last stage of the second development I could no
longer control myself, but cried out in terror and fled out of the
church. A cowardly fear had taken possession of me, whereas I had never
before known fear-let my description not be set down to exaggeration ...
I, who was never ill, thought I should die on the spot. The instinct of
self-preservation drove me out of the church or I should have had to be
carried out as a corpse. So I stumbled out of the church and confessed
with my whole heart to the people standing outside: By my reputation as a
physician and on my word of honour, I take my oath to what I state
herewith, and which I will also certify and ratify with my blood."

So emotionally spent was the doctor that he went on to say:

"I felt the necessity of taking some restorative [a tranquilizer]," which he did.

Dr. D.Eduardo Perez y Perez gives us a graphic medical report of what he saw on October 6, 1919:

“As
I was praying before the crucifix of the Santo Cristo, He looked at me
lovingly for nearly a minute ... then Christ raised His head, which then
remained in quite a peaceful attitude. The muscles of the neck relaxed
... the eyes were at the same time wide open and turned upwards ...
there ensued a violent inhalation with straining of the muscles of the
neck, whereby the musculus cleidomastoideus especially stood out, and
furthermore the musculi pectorales, the scalenus anterior, and the
accessory respiratory muscles, with a considerable dilation of the
intercostal spaces, as in the case, for example at the last struggle
after mortal wounds ... For a moment He appeared on the point of death
... then He resumed His customary expression, as the artist had given it
to the figure ... I must add that during the whole of that afternoon I
saw the figure a reddish colour. The following day it was a yellowish or
lead colour, as with a dying person ...”

There is also a
report of a non-believer who was a medical student named D. Heriberto de
la Villa. His testimony was published in the paper “Del Pueblo Astur” on July 8, 1919. He first strongly declares that: " ... auto-suggestion is quite out of the question, for I did not believe in the miracle when I went."

He later went into the church at the urging of a friend and saw the
movement of the eyes and mouth. Doubting what he was seeing, he changed
his location in the church to better study the movements and then saw
the crucifix of Limpias:

“. . . gaze upon me with a terrible
look full of anger, which makes me shudder, and I cannot help but bow my
head ... I look up again and see how He is looking to the right, bowing
His head, and turns it to the right, so that I can see the crown of
thorns from behind ... Once again he turns on me the same angry look
which makes such a deep impression upon me that I see myself obliged to
leave the church."

Later that day he returned to the church and saw that,

“...
little by little the breast and face became dark blue, the eyes move to
the right and left, upwards and down, the mouth opens somewhat, as if
He were breathing with difficulty. This I saw for fifteen to twenty
minutes ... I also noticed that above the left eyebrow a wound formed,
out of which a drop of blood flowed over the eyebrows, and remained
stationary by the eyelids. After that I saw another drop of blood fall
from the crown of thorns and flow over the face. I could distinctly
discern it, for it was very red and contrasted with the dark blue colour
of the face. Then I saw a quantity of blood drip from the crown of
thorns onto the shoulder, but without touching the face. He opened His
mouth wide, out of which a white matter like froth welled. At this
moment a Dominican priest mounted the pulpit, whereupon Christ gazed
steadily at him for five or six minutes ..."

"When the preacher ended with the words: "and
now, Santo Cristo, give us Thy blessing," Christ opened His eyes and
mouth, smiling, and bowed His head, as if He wished to give the
benediction in reality. At this moment someone who was standing near me
asked me if I would venture to swear on oath to what I saw ... Then I
recognized that Christ wanted to prove to me the truth of what I saw; He
opened His mouth again, out of which froth and blood streamed in great
quantity and flowed out of the comers of the mouth quite distinctly ...
Thereafter I believed that it was now my duty to swear upon oath to what
I had seen, and I did so in the sacristy of the church.”

As noted above, most of those who saw the miracle instinctively
felt the need to change locations within the church in order to verify
what they had witnessed. For some, the miracle took place the first time
they entered the church, but might not have taken place sometime later.
For others, the miracle did not take place the first time, but occurred
later in the day. Some did not see the miracle at all. As one witness
testified: "The fact that these manifestations are seen by some,
by others not, cannot be explained by the laws that are prescribed for
nature."

The official position of the Catholic Church concerning the miraculous events at Limpias

Bishop
Sanchez de Castro, the Bishop of Santander, in whose diocese Limpias
belongs, introduced a canonical process on July 18, 1920 in which Rome
was notified of the miraculous cures and manifestations. One year and
one day later, a plenary indulgence was granted for a period of seven
years to all the faithful who visit the holy crucifix.

This feast was observed in Rome before the end of the seventh
century. It commemorates the recovery of the Holy Cross, which had been
placed on Mt. Calvary by St. Helena and preserved in Jerusalem, but then
had fallen into the hands of Chosroas, King of the Persians. The
precious relic was recovered and returned to Jerusalem by Emperor
Heralius in 629.

The lessons from the Breviary tell us that
Emperor Heraclius carried the Cross back to Jerusalem on his shoulders.
He was clothed with costly garments and with ornaments of precious
stones. But at the entrance to Mt. Calvary a strange incident occurred.
Try as hard as he would, he could not go forward. Zacharias, the Bishop
of Jerusalem, then said to the astonished monarch: "Consider, O Emperor,
that with these triumphal ornaments you are far from resembling Jesus
carrying His Cross." The Emperor then put on a penitential garb and
continued the journey.

Historically today is also the feast of St.
Notburga, a peasant who lived in the Tyrol, Austria and St. Maternus,
Bishop of Cologne.

This day is also called the Exaltation of the Cross, Elevation of the
Cross, Holy Cross Day, Holy Rood Day, or Roodmas. The liturgy of the
Cross is a triumphant liturgy. When Moses lifted up the bronze serpent
over the people, it was a foreshadowing of the salvation through Jesus
when He was lifted up on the Cross. Our Mother Church sings of the
triumph of the Cross, the instrument of our redemption. To follow Christ
we must take up His cross, follow Him and become obedient until death,
even if it means death on the cross. We identify with Christ on the
Cross and become co-redeemers, sharing in His cross.
We made the
Sign of the Cross before prayer which helps to fix our minds and hearts
to God. After prayer we make the Sign of the Cross to keep close to God.
During trials and temptations our strength and protection is the Sign
of the Cross. At Baptism we are sealed with the Sign of the Cross,
signifying the fullness of redemption and that we belong to Christ. Let
us look to the cross frequently, and realize that when we make the Sign
of the Cross we give our entire self to God — mind, soul, heart, body,
will, thoughts.

O cross, you are the glorious sign of victory.Through your power may we share in the triumph of Christ Jesus.

Symbol:
The cross of triumph is usually pictured as a globe with the cross on
top, symbolic of the triumph of our Savior over the sin of the world,
and world conquest of His Gospel through the means of a grace (cross and
orb).

This is my favorite statue of St. Clare. I've seen this statue in the Poor Clare Colettine monastery in Cleveland, OH. It was about life-size and in an beautiful niche in the wall in the extern's hallway and just to stand before it was like standing before St. Clare! It is more beautiful in person.